In recent years, building construction has often occurred at a frenzied pace. Builders are faced with increasing costs and deadlines. Workmen trip over each other and equipment to complete the task at hand in a cost-efficient and expeditious manner. It is sometimes difficult for construction to proceed in an orderly fashion.
Plumbers are just one of the skilled workers needed to assist in constructing a building. In the working environment of a plumber, there are a substantial number of pipes which must be installed and fixed into any one place in accordance with good plumbing practices and governing laws, regulations and ordinances. In addition, there may be electrical wires running in the same place. This can create a tangle of pipes, wires, etc. In this same area, not only is the plumber and/or electrician working, there may also be the framer, a concrete laborer and others. With that number of people working in one area and in the haste to get things done, it is often the case that pipes get unintentionally moved out of position. They can also get moved out of position, for example, during the pouring of concrete. It is necessary to stabilize the pipe(s) to prevent movement which may work the pipe loose and out of the desired position. This stabilization is generally done by taping or tying the pipe to the wall or floor or other support in an area adjacent to the point of placement; a process which is both time-consuming and is not altogether stable. Other supports such as hangars and anchors have been used, but these have also proven unacceptable.
Although it is important to secure pipe, many construction personnel do not have the necessary time or skill to make a proper stabilizer using ordinary tape, string and wire. Even when the construction personnel have sufficient time and skill, such makeshift stabilizers do not work well since they too can be shifted out of place and the pipes can be tangled with each other.
Accordingly, there is a need for a novel pipe stabilizer which is of simplified construction, inexpensive to manufacture and easy to use. Such a stabilizer is needed which holds the pipes in a fixed relationship for proper placement and to minimize movement thereof. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages.